Lee Babcock benches 325 pounds during an after school workout that Alpena football coach Aaron Sims holds daily for his football program. The team has spent the offseason in the weight room as part of Sims’ offseason training program.

School is over and summer break has officially begun. Despite the school year ending, the Alpena football program will be taking few breaks as it continues putting in work to further prepare for the start of the 2017 season, which begins in August.

“Over the past 10 months, we have made some really good strides as far as strength goes. Last year we didn’t have a single guy squat reps of over 300 pounds, but now we have a list of people,” Alpena coach Aaron Sims said. “As far as building that core strength, we have made some tremendous strides. The kids have really put in the time and effort to get stronger and more athletic and I think it’s paying off for them and I think we’ll begin seeing it not just during the fall sports, but for kids who play multiple sports.”

Sims will enter his second season as Alpena’s coach, but has already began changing the culture around the football program and the school. If one were to walk through the hall and towards the gym of Alpena High School, you may run into some of Sims’ work and motivational strategies.

Several laminated signs hang throughout the school and throughout the weight room and locker room area. Nearly all signs read “Alpena Wildcat Football” with the motto “Where only your best is good enough” displayed on each sign with a different photo or phrase written on each sign.

This is just one small example of the kind of change that Sims has brought to the program. Photos of past records or rival teams celebrating victories are displayed in the weight room amongst charts that track the players progress as a motivational reminder of how hard the team must work in order to achieve its goals.

“I think anytime you can put in the work as a kid and start to see your body changing and lift weights that you haven’t been able to before, it creates a different type of confidence and that’s what the weight room does,” Sims. “It creates confidence and I think some have seen it already and the goal is for everyone to continue seeing more and more of it.”

Not only has the intensity and workload increased from previous years, but the program’s numbers have also increased. The program has roughly 75 kids last season and the number has recently jumped to 108. Sims has nearly 50 players on his varsity list and he’s constantly going through the list to see who shows up and puts in the time and effort.

“I’m a little obsessed with all of this and I go through the lists to see who’s showing up and who’s not, but almost everyone comes in and gets their work in,” Sims said. The numbers are up and honestly I feel the sky is limit here as far as numbers go. We’re definitely going to do some things to draw in some other kids. Part of it to is the numbers are going to continue to grow once kids see that you’re consistent, running a good program, you’re investing in them and know that you care for them. I think that’s going to be a reason for the jump as well.”

Over the past several months, Sims and the athletes, especially his players have all formed a tight bond. During the school day and during workouts, Sims will see his student athletes walking in the hallways or putting in work after school and greet them with a special handshake that the team has developed over the past several months.

“I’m at the school a lot and I think it’s just a matter of we come in, work together and put in a lot of hours together. It’s really about putting them in a position to be successful,” Sims said. “Working together and putting in those hours together, you start to build bonds. The weight room does that and being around everyone who can see you put in work and combining all of that tends to build that camaraderie.”

There will be some traditional strength training throughout the summer months on Mondays and Thursdays with the team following the four core lifts and the team will take part in Gladiator days on Wednesday at Wildcat Stadium. Sims keeps in contact with his players and is committed to turning around Alpena’s program.

“I think we will see the fruits of our labor in 71 days. We have talked about everything we put in and making sure that we keep after our goals and don’t forsaken all of the time we put in during the winter because we have the summer months coming up,” Sims said. “I think we definitely are going to be mentally tougher and there’s no doubt that we’re going to be physically stronger and there’s just something about putting in that time when it comes time to compete, there’s a different mindset. Will it always guarantee wins? No, but I think we’ll definitely see the fruits of our labor at some point.”

Jonny Zawacki can be reached via email at jzawacki@thealpenanews.com or by phone at 358-5690.